Group leader: Andrew Davison
Neuroinformatics
In brief
Our work has two intertwined threads, one focused on specific questions in neuroscience, the other on developing novel informatics tools and approaches for neuroscience data sharing, modelling and simulation, and brain-inspired computing more generally. The neuroinformatics tools are essential for our own neuroscience research. By making the extra effort to generalize and share the tools so they can be used more widely, we accelerate the work of others, receive feedback that increases the quality and robustness of our own work, and benefit from the contributions of others.

Working at the interface of physics, biology and computer science, the Neuroinformatics team focuses on understanding how neuronal properties, synaptic mechanisms and network connectivity interact in giving rise to cortical and sub-cortical network function. To study this we use a data-driven, open science approach based on large-scale modelling and simulation, data-sharing, and development of open source software tools.
- PyNN simulator-independent specification of spiking neuronal network models
- Neo a standard data model for electrophysiology, with support for a wide range of neurophysiology file formats
- Mozaik- An integrated workflow framework for large scale neural simulations
- BRAINS data repository – find, share and reuse open neuroscience data
- Human Brain Project Human Brain Project Neuromorphic Computing Platform – online access to the BrainScaleS and SpiNNaker neuromorphic computing systems.
- Model Validation Framework – tools for systematically validating models against experimental results
- Sumatra Automated tracking of numerical experiments, for reproducible research.
Selected publications
- Andrew Davison, Daniel Brüderle, Jochen Eppler, Jens Kremkow, Eilif Muller, Dejan Pecevski, Laurent Perrinet and Pierre Yger, PyNN : a common interface for neuronal network simulators, Frontiers in NeuroInformatics 2, (2009) DOI: 10.3389/neuro.11.011.2008
- Andrew Davison, Automated capture of experiment context for easier reproducibility in computational research, Computing in Science and Engineering 14 : 48-56, (2012) DOI: 10.1109/MCSE.2012.41
- Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Learning cross-modal spatial transformations through spike timing-dependent plasticity, J Neurosci 26 : 5604-15, (2006) DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5263-05.2006
- Daniel Brüderle, MA Petrovici, Bernhard Vogginger, Matthias Ehrlich, Thomas Pfeil, Sebastian Milner, A Grubl, K Wendt, Eric Muller, M-O Schwartz, D Husmann de Oliveira , S Jeltsch, J Fieres, M Schilling , P Muller, O Breitwieser, V Petkov, L Muller, Andrew Davison, P Krishnamurthy , Jens Kremkow, M Lundqvist, Eilif Muller, J Partzsch, S Scholze, H Zühl, C MAYR, Alain Destexhe, Markus Diesmann, TC Potjans , Anders Lansner, R Schüffny , Johannes Schemmel and Karlheinz Meier, A comprehensive workflow for general-purpose neural modeling with highly configurable neuromorphic hardware systems. , Biological Cybernetics 104 : 263-296, (2011) DOI: 10.1007/s00422-011-0435-9
- Andrew Davison, Thierry Brizzi, Domenico Guarino, Olivier Manette, Cyril Monier, Gérard Sadoc and Yves Frégnac, Helmholtz : a customizable framework for neurophysiology data management, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics : , (2013) DOI: 10.3389/conf.fninf.2013.09.00025
2021
- M. Morgan Taylor, Diego Contreras, Alain Destexhe, Yves Frégnac, Jan Antolik. An Anatomically Constrained Model of V1 Simple Cells Predicts the Coexistence of Push–Pull and Broad Inhibition. J. Neuroscience, 41 (37) 7797-7812 (2021); doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0928-20.2021.
2018
- Frégnac, Y. « Big Data » et industrialisation des neurosciences : une feuille de route raisonnable pour la compréhension du Cerveau ? Intellectica, 1-2, 69, pp. 201-236, (2018).
2017
- Frégnac, Y. Big Data and Neuroscience industrialization: A safe roadmap for understanding the Brain ? In the special issue « The need for new concepts in Neuroscience ». Science. 358 (6362): 470-477. (Google Scholar: 64), (2017).
- G Hahn, A Ponce-Alvarez, C Monier, G Benvenuti, A Kumar, F Chavane, and Frégnac, Y. Spontaneous cortical activity is transiently poised close to criticality. PLoS computational biology 13 (5), e1005543 (Google Scholar 49), (2017).
- Tomasz Gorski, R Veltz, M Galtier, Hélissande Fragnaud and Bartosz Telenczuk, Inverse correlation processing by neurons with active dendrites, bioRxiv, (2017)
2016
- Jan Antolik, S.B. Hofer, James Bednar and T ;D. Mrsic-Flogel, Model Constrained by Visual Hierarchy Improves Prediction of Neural Responses to Natural Scenes, PLoS Comput Biol 6 : 12, (2016)
2015
- Frégnac, Y. and Bathellier, B. Cortical correlates of low-level perception : from neural circuits to percepts. Neuron. 88(1): 110-126. (Google Scholar : 46), (2015).
- C Pouzat, Andrew Davison and K Hinsen, La recherche reproductible : une communication scientifique explicite, Statistique et société 3 : 35-38, (2015)
- Eric Muller, James Bednar, Markus Diesmann, M-O Gewaltig, Michael L. Hines and Andrew Davison, Python in Neuroscience, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 9 : doi:10.3389/fninf.2015.00011, (2015)
- A Pelosi and Domenico Guarino, Striatal cholinergic interneurons modulate action selection and reinforcement learning, Frontiers in Neural Circuits : 9(15), (2015)
2014
- Frégnac, Y. and Laurent, G. Where is the brain in the Human Brain Project. Nature Comments. Nature, Sep 4th 2014, 513 : 27-29. Supplementary to be found at www.brain.mpg.de/fregnac-laurent-2014 (Google Scholar : 79), (2014).
- S Garcia, Domenico Guarino, F Jaillet, T.R. Jennings, R. Propper, P.L. Rautenberg, C Rodgers, A Sobolev, T Wachtler, Pierre Yger and Andrew Davison, Neo : an object model for handling electrophysiology data in multiple formats, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 8:10 : , (2014)
- Mikael Djurfeldt, Andrew Davison and Jochen Eppler, Efficient generation of connectivity in neuronal networks from simulator-independent descriptions, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 8:43 : , (2014)
- M Vella, Robert C. Cannon, Sharon Crook, Andrew Davison, G Ganapathy, H.P.C Robinson, R.A Silver and Padraig Gleeson, LibNeuroML and PyLEMS : using Python to combine procedural and declarative modelling approaches in computational neuroscience, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 8:38 : , (2014)
2013
- Jan Antolik and Andrew Davison, Integrated workflows for spiking neuronal network simulations, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 7:34 : , (2013)
- H Ko, L Cossell, C Baragli, Jan Antolik, C Clopath, S.B. Hofer and T ;D. Mrsic-Flogel, The emergence of functional microcircuits in visual cortex, Nature 496 : 96-100, (2013)
- J.L Stevens, J Law, Jan Antolik and James Bednar, Mechanisms for stable, robust, and adaptive development of orientation maps in the primary visual cortex, J. Neuroscience : , (2013)
- Andrew Davison, Thierry Brizzi, Domenico Guarino, Olivier Manette, Cyril Monier, Gérard Sadoc and Yves Frégnac, Helmholtz : a customizable framework for neurophysiology data management, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics : , (2013)
2012
- Andrew Davison, Automated capture of experiment context for easier reproducibility in computational research, Computing in Science and Engineering 14 : 48-56, (2012)
- Andrew Davison, Collaborative modelling : The future of computational neuroscience ?, Network : Computation in Neural Systems : , (2012)
- Sharon Crook, James Bednar, Sandra Berger, Robert C. Cannon, Andrew Davison, Mikael Djurfeldt, Jochen Eppler, Birgit Kriener, Steve Furber, Bruce Graham, Hans Plesser, Lars Schwabe, Leslie Smith, Volker Steuber and Sacha van Albada, Creating, documenting and sharing network models, Network : Computation in Neural Systems : , (2012)
2011
- Daniel Brüderle, MA Petrovici, Bernhard Vogginger, Matthias Ehrlich, Thomas Pfeil, Sebastian Milner, A Grubl, K Wendt, Eric Muller, M-O Schwartz, D Husmann de Oliveira , S Jeltsch, J Fieres, M Schilling , P Muller, O Breitwieser, V Petkov, L Muller, Andrew Davison, P Krishnamurthy , Jens Kremkow, M Lundqvist, Eilif Muller, J Partzsch, S Scholze, H Zühl, C MAYR, Alain Destexhe, Markus Diesmann, TC Potjans , Anders Lansner, R Schüffny , Johannes Schemmel and Karlheinz Meier, A comprehensive workflow for general-purpose neural modeling with highly configurable neuromorphic hardware systems. , Biological Cybernetics 104 : 263-296, (2011)
2010
- Padraig Gleeson, Sharon Crook, Robert C. Cannon, Michael L. Hines, Guy O. Billings, Matteo Farinella, Thomas M. Morse, Andrew Davison, Subhasis Ray, Upinder S. Bhalla, Simon R. Barnes, Yoana D. Dimitrova and R. Angus Silver, NeuroML : A language for describing data driven models of neurons and networks with a high degree of biological detail., PLoS Computational Biology 6 : e1000815, (2010)
2009
- Andrew Davison, Michael L. Hines and Eric Muller, Trends in programming languages for neuroscience simulations, Frontiers in Neuroscience 3 : 374-380, (2009)
- Daniel Brüderle, Eric Muller, Andrew Davison, Eric Muller, Johannes Schemmel and Karlheinz Meier, Establishing a novel modeling tool : a python-based interface for a neuromorphic hardware system, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics 3 : 17.1-17.4, (2009)
- Michael L. Hines, Andrew Davison and Eilif Muller, NEURON and Python, Frontiers in NeuroInformatics 2 : doi:10.3389/neuro.11.001.2009, (2009)
- Andrew Davison, Daniel Brüderle, Jochen Eppler, Jens Kremkow, Eilif Muller, Dejan Pecevski, Laurent Perrinet and Pierre Yger, PyNN : a common interface for neuronal network simulators, Frontiers in NeuroInformatics 2 : doi:10.3389/neuro.11.011.2008, (2009)
- Olivier Marre, Pierre Yger, Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Reliable recall of spontaneous activity patterns in chaotic cortical networks., The Journal of Neuroscience 29(46) : 14596-14606, (2009)
2007
- Romain Brette, Michelle Rudolph, Ted Carnevale, Michael L. Hines, David Beeman, James M. Bower, Markus Diesmann, Abigail Morrison, Philip H. Goodman, Frederick C. Harris Jr, Milind Zirpe, Thomas Natschläger, Dejan Pecevski, Bard Ermentrout, Mikael Djurfeldt, Anders Lansner, Olivier Rochel, Thierry Vieville, Eric Muller, Andrew Davison, Sami El Boustani and Alain Destexhe, Simulation of networks of spiking neurons : a review of tools and strategies, J Comput Neurosci 23 : 349-98, (2007)
2006
- Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Learning cross-modal spatial transformations through spike timing-dependent plasticity, J Neurosci 26 : 5604-15, (2006)
- Mathilde Badoual, Quan Zou, Andrew Davison, Michelle Rudolph, Thierry Bal, Yves Frégnac and Alain Destexhe, Biophysical and phenomenological models of multiple spike interactions in spike-timing dependent plasticity, Int J Neural Syst 16 : 79-97, (2006)
2004
- Andrew Davison, Thomas M. Morse, Michele Migliore, Gordon M. Shepherd and Michael L. Hines, Semi-automated population of an online database of neuronal models (ModelDB) with citation information, using PubMed for validation, Neuroinformatics 2 : 327-32, (2004)
2003
- Michele Migliore, Thomas M. Morse, Andrew Davison, Luis Marenco, Gordon M. Shepherd and Michael L. Hines, ModelDB : making models publicly accessible to support computational neuroscience, Neuroinformatics 1 : 135-9, (2003)
- Andrew Davison, Jianfeng Feng and David Brown, Dendrodendritic inhibition and simulated odor responses in a detailed olfactory bulb network model, J Neurophysiol 90 : 1921-35, (2003)
2000
- Andrew Davison, Jianfeng Feng and David Brown, A reduced compartmental model of the mitral cell for use in network models of the olfactory bulb, Brain Res Bull 51 : 393-9, (2000)
Chapitres de livre
2006
- Yves Frégnac, Michelle Rudolph, Andrew Davison and Alain Destexhe, Complexity in Neuronal Networks, In : Biological Networks (François Képès) World Scientific 291-338, (2006)
2004
- Andrew Davison, Biologically-detailed network modelling, In : Computational Neuroscience : A Comprehensive Approach (J. Feng) Chapman and Hall/CRC Press 287-304, (2004)
2002
- Andrew Davison, Thomas M. Morse, Michele Migliore, Luis Marenco, Gordon M. Shepherd and Michael L. Hines, ModelDB : A Resource for Neuronal and Network Modeling, In : Neuroscience Databases : A Practical Guide (R. Kötter) Kluwer Academic Publishers 99-109, (2002)
- Andrew Davison and Gordon M. Shepherd, Olfactory Bulb, In : The Handbook of Brain Theory and Neural Networks, 2nd Edn (M. Arbib) The MIT Press , (2002)
Livres et Thèses
2001
- Andrew Davison, Mathematical modelling of information processing in the olfactory bulb, In : () Ph.D. thesis, University of Cambridge , (2001)
Présentations
2010
- Andrew Davison, Challenges and solutions in replicability and provenance tracking, Poster At : CNS*2010, (San Antonio (Texas)) (2010)
- Andrew Davison, Integration : a collaborative software tool-chain for neuromorphic computation, Poster At : Frontiers in Neuromorphic Computation, (Paris (France)) (2010)
- Andrew Davison, Automated tracking of computational experiments using Sumatra, Poster At : EuroSciPy 2010, (Paris (France)) (2010)
- Andrew Davison, Thierry Brizzi, Olivier Manette, Cyril Monier and Yves Frégnac, Helmholtz : a modular tool for neuroscience databases, Poster At : Front. Neurosci. Conference Abstract Neuroinformatics, (Kobe (Japan)) (2010)
2009
- Pierre Yger, Sami El Boustani, Olivier Marre, Andrew Davison, Alain Destexhe and Yves Frégnac, Spatial organization of evoked neuronal dynamics in 2D recurrent networks, with or without structured stimulation, Poster At : BMC Neuroscience 10 , (Berlin (Germany)) (2009)
- Pierre Yger, Sami El Boustani, Olivier Marre, Andrew Davison, Alain Destexhe and Yves Frégnac, Spatial organization of evoked neuronal dynamics in 2D recurrent networks, with or without structured stimulation, Poster At : Eighteenth Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting, (Berlin (Germany)) (2009)
2008
- Pierre Yger, Abigail Morrison, Markus Diesmann, Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, STDP in topogra-phical neuronal networks, Poster At : RIKEN BSI Workshop, (Wako (Japan)) (2008)
- Pierre Yger, Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, PyNN : a common Python interface for network simulators. , Poster At : 17th Annual Computational Neuroscience Meeting , (Portland (USA)) (2008)
- Pierre Yger, Olivier Marre, Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Reliable recall of spontaneous activity patterns in chaotic cortical networks, Poster At : NeuroComp, (Marseille) (2008)
2007
- Pierre Yger, Olivier Marre, Sami El Boustani, Pierre Baudot, Cyril Monier, Manuel Levy, Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Chaos control : Reliable signal propagation and pattern completion in chaotic neuronal networks, Poster At : SFN, (San Diego) (2007)
- Andrew Davison, Pierre Yger, Jens Kremkow, Laurent Perrinet and Eilif Muller, PyNN : Towards a universal neural simulator API in Python, Poster At : CNS, (Toronto) (2007)
2006
- Andrew Davison, NModLib : a database of components for neuroscience models, Poster At : World Association of Modeling > Biologically Accurate Modeling Meeting, (San Antonio, Texas) (2006)
- Andrew Davison, NModLib : a database of components for neuroscience models. , Talk invité At : World Association of Modeling > Biologically Accurate Modeling Meeting, (San Antonio, Texas (USA)) (2006)
- Andrew Davison, Simulator-independent network modelling with Python and XML. , Talk invité At : Modeling the Brain’s Labyrinth, (Fodele, Crete (Greece)) (2006)
- Andrew Davison, Pierre Yger, Jason Chan, Fiona Newell and Yves Frégnac, A combined psychophysical-modelling study of the mechanisms of tactile picture perception, Poster At : CNS*2006, (Edinburgh, UK) (2006)
- Andrew Davison, Simulator-independent network modelling with Python and XML, Talk At : Modeling the Brain’s Labyrinth, (Fodele, Crete, Greece) (2006)
2005
- Andrew Davison, Ammar Belatreche, Johannes Fieres, Jason Chan, Fiona Newell and Yves Frégnac, The Two-Ring paradigm : a computational approach to multisensory code binding. , Poster At : International SenseMaker Workshop on Life-Like Perception Systems, (Derry (U.K)) (2005)
- Andrew Davison, Ammar Belatreche, Johannes Fieres, Jason Chan, Fiona Newell and Yves Frégnac, The Two-Ring paradigm : a computational approach to multisensory code binding, Talk At : International SenseMaker Workshop on Life-Like Perception Systems, (Derry, UK) (2005)
- Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, The Two-ring paradigm : a computational approach of multisensory code binding. , Talk invité At : International SenseMaker Workshop, (School of computing Intelligence, University of Ulster, Derry (Northern Ireland)) (2005)
2004
- Andrew Davison and Yves Frégnac, Training a network of spiking neurons to perform coordinate transformations, Poster At : SfN, ( San Diego, California) (2004)
- Andrew Davison, Learning simple computations in spiking basis function networks using spike time-dependent plasticity, Poster At : FENS, (Lisbon, Portugal) (2004)
2002
- Andrew Davison, Michael L. Hines and Gordon M. Shepherd, Membrane bistability and sub-threshold oscillations in an olfactory bulb mitral cell model, Poster At : AChemS XXIV, (Sarasota, Florida) (2002)
2001
- Andrew Davison and Jianfeng Feng, A model of network interactions in the olfactory bulb, Poster At : AChemS XXIII, (Sarasota, Florida) (2001)
- Andrew Davison, Zhishang Zhou, Michael L. Hines and Gordon M. Shepherd, Simulating sodium and potassium currents in an olfactory mitral cell model, Talk At : SfN, (San Diego, California) (2001)
2000
- Andrew Davison, Jianfeng Feng and David Brown, Spike synchronization in a biophysically-detailed model of the olfactory bulb, Poster At : CNS*00, (Brugge, Belgium) (2000)
1999
- Andrew Davison, Jianfeng Feng and David Brown, Structure of lateral inhibition in an olfactory bulb model, Talk At : IWANN’99, (Alicante, Spain) (1999)
1997
- Andrew Davison, Tanya Miller, Ian Belton, S Bolton and David Bonnett, An assessment of image registration in the treatment planning of tumours of the brain, Talk At : Radiology 1997 > Imaging, Science and Oncology, (Birmingham, U.K) (1997)